Peanut Butter Cookies

By acampman

Ingredients

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups peanut butter (usually smooth, but if you like crunch, use crunchy)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Details

Servings 16

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the butter and sugars together in a big bowl, using the whisk attachment of an electric mixer on high speed (or a wire whisk), until they are fluffy and light lemon-yellow in color, about 5 minutes. Add the peanut butter, and continue beating at high speed until it is incorporated with the butter. With the mixer on low speed, beat in the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla.

In a separate, medium-size bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together. Gradually add these dry ingredients to the wet, stirring with a wooden spoon (or the paddle attachment of your mixer on low speed) until no flour is visible.

To make big cookies, use a 1/3 cup measuring cup to scoop out the dough. Roll the dough for each cookie between your hands into a ball. Have some flour handy to dust your hands in case the dough is too sticky to deal with. If it is still too sticky, which it may be, refirgerate the dough for an hour. Place the balls on your baking sheet, leaving 2 inches between them, and flatten them all with the heel of your hand until they are all about 4 inches in diameter.

To make smaller cookies, use a teaspoon to scoop up the dough and your finger to scrape it onto the baking sheet. Drop the cookies 1 1/2 inches apart, no flattening necessary.

Crosshatch them with a fork, dragging the fork to make longer lines.

Place the baking sheet on the center rack in the oven, and bake the cookies for 18-20 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown around the edges (10-12 minutes for small cookies).

You don't want to undercook these; they are best crispy.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven,
and place it on a wire rack to let the cookies cool slightly. Lift the baking sheet off the rack, and use a metal spatula to transfer the cookies to the rack to cool completely. If you're using parchment paper, there's no need to let the cookies cool on a rack. Slide the paper with the hot cookies off the baking sheet and onto a flat surface to cool.